Bag closing machine



Filed April l. 1949 K. STONE BAG CLOSING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Shee'b l Dec.15, 1953 K. STONE BAG CLOSING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 1,1949 Jmwwew Dee. @59 1953 K. STONE BAG CLOSING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed April l, 1949 151, 1953 K STONE BAG CLOSING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet4 Filed April l. 1949 Dec. 15, 1953 K. STONE] 2,652,357

BAG CLOSING MACHINE Filed April l, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Dec.15, 1953 asian BAG OLO SING MACHINE Kenneth Stone, Elmhurst, Ill.,assigner to Neostyle, Incorporated, Chicago, lll., a corporation ofNevada Application April 1, 1949, Serial No. 84,791

(Cl. SI5- 142) 9 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a bagr closing machine for use in connectionwith the packaging of products in bags of the expanding wail or gussettype, and in particular to an improved sucker for tucking in theexpanding wall.

The particular embodiment of my invention herein shown is adapted foruse with heat sealing bags.

t is an object of my invention to provide an improved device for tuclingthe expanding walls of a bag and for bringing the top edges of the bagtogether while the bag is in motion.

It is a further object to provide an improved mechanism for conveying toand through a sealer, and one which straightens and shapes the bags andcauses the top edges of the bag to be tucked in, closed and sealed.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an improved tuclaerwhich shapes the upper edges of the bag and contents at the same timethat tucking is effected, thereby providing a neat looking package.

Other objects, features and advantages of my invention will becomeapparent as the description proceeds.

With reference now to the drawings in which like numerals designate likeparts:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation oi a preferred embodiment of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan View thereof;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig 4 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation showing the detent wheel andits associated parts;

Fig. 5 is a section taken along line 5 5 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is an elevation of the cam;

Fig 7 is an elevation of a portion of the pawl wheel;

Fig. E. is a fragmentary view showing the cani and the pawl wheel inlocked position;

Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation illustrating the operation of thetucker;

Fig. 10 is a plan view taken along line ivill of Fig. 9;

Fig. 1l is a perspective view of the parts in position shown in Fig. 9;

Fig. l2 is a sectional elevation similar to Fig 9 but showing a changedposition of the parts;

Fig. 13 is a plan view taken along line l3-l3 of Fig. 12; and

Fig. 14 is a horizontal section taken along line i-M of Fig. 3.

With reference now to Figs. 1 and 2, the machine comprises a framedesignated generally by the reference numeral l!) which includes a baseplate il, one or more legs l2, and other conventional frame elements notshown. The righthand portion of the machine as viewed in Figsv 1 and 2constitutes a bag receiving portion i3 and the left-hand portionconstitutes a bag shaping and closing portion lil. The bags moveforwardly from right to left, and the term forward refers to theleft-hand portion of certain elements and the term rear to theright-hand portion, as those elements would be viewed in Figs. 1 and 2.The bag receiving portion i3 is of substantial length, but for the sakeof clarity, a portion of it is not shown in the drawings, as indicatedby the break lines. The left-hand end oi the machine, which includes abag delivery table, is not shown since it forms no part of my invention.

I The bag shaping and closing portion Ill includes a tucker designatedgenerally as the reference numeral l5 and heat sealing rollers it. Theterm heat sealing bag includes any bag, the top edges of which are madefrom a ma terial which can be heat sealed. For instance, the top edges,or the whole bag, can be made from certain types of thermoplasticmaterial, or they can be made from non-thermoplastic material which isprovided with a heat sealing coating. Thus, after the top edges of thebag have .y been brought together, they are fed between the heat sealingrollers l and. the bag is thus sealed. It is understood that heatsealing means other than the heat sealing rollers is may be employed, ifdesired.

The bags are advanced forwardly by means of a conveyor belt Il, theupper span of which is supported by a tracli ES. The latter may be inthe form of a horizontal plate which is spaced above the base plate li.rlhe machine prefers ably includes means, not shown herein, for ad-,iusting the elevation of the track IS. The conveyor belt is disposedbetween two pulleys, one of which, pulley i9, is disposed at the rightend of the machine and the other one of which is at the left end of themachine and not shown.

vertically disposed shaper belts 2i! and 2i are also provided whichengage the side walls of the bag and serve to shape the bag as it movesthrough the machine. The Shaper belts and the conveyor belt are drivenat the same rate of speed by conventional means, not shown herein. EachShaper belt is disposed between two pulleys, only one of which is shownherein. The pulley 22 is disposed at the extreme right end of themachine, and pulley 23 about which the Shaper belt 2l passes, isdisposed at the right-hand end of the shaping and closing portion It.Thus, the conveyor belt il' and the Shaper belt 2G extend all the wayout to the bag receiving portion. Filled bags are placed on the conveyorbelt at the bag receiving portion, and they lean against the sha-perbelt 2B and are advanced by belts il and it up to the closing andshaping portion lli.

In the shaping and closing portion lil, the belts 2i* and 2i pass overShaper plates 2s and 25 so that the side walls of the bag may be shaped.rEhese shaper plates are mounted by means of brackets E55, 2 onsupporting plates 28 and 29 respectively, which are spaced above thebase plate ii and are mounted in suitable ways, not shown, icr slidingmovement toward and away from each other. Thus, the distance between theShaper belts may be adjusted for different size bags. This adjustment iseffected by means of shafts 3c and 3l which run crosswise of the machineand are provided with right and left hand screw threads 32 and 33respectively. The supporting plates 28 and 29 are provided with threadedcollars which cooperate with the screw threads Si.' and 33 so thatrotation of the shafts 3! and 3l will cause the plates to be movedtoward and away from each other. The shafts are 1310- vided withsprockets 3d and 35 which are connected by a suitable chain 3B. rlhus,the shafts may be rotated in unison by means of a handle 3l' which issecured to shaft 3 I. Pulleys 33 and 39 are mounted at the righthand endof supporting plates 28 and 29 respectively and serve as belt guides.rlhus, if the Shaper plates are moved closer to each other, the guidepulleys prevent the belt from scraping over the edges of the Shaperplate. Idler pulleys lle and 5| are adjustably mounted on base plate Hand bear against the outer spans of the shaper belts to regulate thebelt tension. An adjustably iounted backing plate l2 may be provided forthat portion of the inner span of shaper belt 2B which extends over thebag receiving portion in order that the bags may be suitably supportedas they are advanced. rlihat portion of the bag path f which is betweenthe pulleys 39 and 23 may be termed the throat d3 of the machine. Herethe Shaper belt 2l moves inwardly and serves to straighten up the bagswhich have been tilted against the shaper belt 26 as they pass over thebag receiving portion le.

From the throat, the bags are continuously advanced between the shaperplates past the tucker l5. The latter is mounted on a rotatable sleeve45, which in turn is supported on a stationary shaft 46. The stationaryshaft is secured to supports 4S and i9 which extend upwardly from thebase plate il. The tucker l5 is in the form of a paddle wheel and asshown in Figs. 3 and 9 comprises a hub 5S which carries four spokes 5l.Each spoke is provided with a shoe 52. The shoe is generally T-shape andcomprises a hexagon shaped plate 53 and a radially disposed plate 54.The forwardly extending portion of plate 53 can be termed a toe 55, andthe rearwardly extending portion can be termed a heel 5.6. The shoe alsoincludes a toe rod 5l and a heel rod 58 which are disposed parallel tothe spoke 5 I.

As shown in Figs. 9 and l0, the bag 5l! includes a bottom wall ii l,front and rear expanding walls 62 and 63 respectively, and side walls6d., and 55. The contents of the bag is indicated by the referencenumeral E6.

llhe operation of the tucker is shown in Figs. 9 to 13 inclusive. In theFig. 9 position, the tucker is locked in a stationary position. As thebag Eil is advanced by the belts I7, 2e and 2| into engagement with theshoe 52, the heel 56 tucks the front wall t2. Then the tucker is causedto rotate at a peripheral or linear speed greater than the speed atwhich the bag is advanced so that the toe ci the next succeeding shoewill engage the rear wall 63 of the bag. This position of the parts isshown in Fig. 12. The plate 53 is spaced slightly above the level of thecontents 66 of the bag so that the tucking is effected without anytearing of the bag and so that the motion of the bag can be transmittedto the shoe by the pushing of the contents 56 against the radiallydisposed plate 565. The plates 53 and 5G, which are perpendicular toeach other also serve to shape the contents of the bag so as to make acomparatively sharp corner, thus contributing to the neat appearance ofthe bag.

The tucker is intermittently rotated in the manner indicated above bymeans of a clutch esignated generally by the reference numeral lil nd bymeans of suitable controls hereinafter described. The clutch, 'as shownin Figs. 3 to B, serves to establish a driving connection between acontinuously rotating sleeve ll and the sleeve 55 on which the tucker ismounted. The sleeves 115 and Tl are disposed in end to end relationshipon the stationary shaft 5S. A pulley l2 is secured to the sleeve il andis continuously driven by means of a belt "i3 lrom a suitable source ofpower, not shown. A ratchet wheel M is secured to sleeve 1l and rotatescontinuously therewith and serves to drive a pawl wheel l5 mounted onthe sleeve 45. The pawl wheel includes a pawl l5 which is pivotallymounted on a plate 'il by a pivot pin l2 as shown in Figs. 3 and 7. Aspring '59 biases the pawl inwardly against the teeth of the ratchetwheel i4. 'Die plate 'il is suitably riveted to the pawl wheel "55.

Disposed between the ratchet wheel and the pawl wheel is a stationarycam ilo which is mounted on the stationary shaft he cam provided withfour rising cam surfaces 8l and four drops 82. Thus, as the pawl wheelis driven by the ratchet wheel, the pawl 'it will be engaged by the camand raised out of engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel,thereby breaking the driving connection. Means are provided to lock thepawl wheel and its associated parts in a position in which the pawl isheld out of cngagement with the ratchet wheel. Thus, tucker and pawlwheel are caused to rotate intermittently through 90 after which theparts are locked in a position corresponding to that shown in Fig. 9.

The locking means are shown in Fig. ain. comprise a detent wheel 83connected to sleeve l5 and having four notches 34, spaced 30 apart. Aplunger 85 cooperates with the notches and is slidably mounted in acasing 8%. A. spring 37 disposed within the casing urges the plungerinto engagement with the detent wheel. rhe plunger is retracted by meansof a solenoid indicated son erally by the reference numeral The solenoidand the plunger casing are suitably mounted on a portion of the frame ofthe machine. The solenoid includes an armature Sie which is connected tothe plunger by suitable means such a pin 913. the plunger will beretracted from one of the notches 84 and permit rotation of the detentwheel. It is necessary only that the plunger be maintained in itSretracted position. during the rst few degress of rotation of the detentwheel, after which the plunger can be released without impairing themovement of the detent wheel up to the next locking position. Thesolenoid vis actuated by a trip lever Si which projects through anaperture in shaper plate 25 into the bag path. A suitable switch 92 isclosed by the displacement of the trip lever and serves to close thesolenoid circuit, the switch and solenoid being operatively connected-by means of an electric cable S3.

The tucker is normally located in any one of Thus, upon operation of thesolenoid,`

four positions, the locked position being shown in Fig. 9, and thecorresponding loched positions oi? the detent wheel and ot the pawlwheel 'lli being shown in Figs. i and e respectively. It will beobserved n. n a comparison. of these figures that the pawi oi the pawlwheel is a icw degrees out of alignment with the notches oi the datentwheel, and that the notches of the datent u.. 3i may be in alignmentwith the drops oi i/e stationary cana 8d, when the parte in lockedposition. However, the angular relationship of the parts 83, l5 and il@may be changed, as pointed out hereinafter. The position oi the triplever is such that the solenoid will not be actuated until the bag hasbeen moved into the Fig. 9 position in which. the forward wall istucked. rlhen the tucker, the pawl wheel and the det-ent wheel arecaused to rotate at a greater rate of speed. The shape of the canisurfaces is not critical since the pawl, wheel can be disengaged fromthe ratchet wheel at any time after the parts have been set into motion,the inertia of the parts serving to carry them into the next 90position. After the datent wheel has been released it is the pressure ofthe bag against the radially disposed plate 5ft which displaces the pawlwheel the few degrees which is necessary before the pawl drops oi thecam drops 32 and is engaged by the teeth of the ratchet wheel. Thedetent wheel is mounted for angular adjustment on the sleeve t5 and thecam -f il@ is mounted for angular adjustment on the stationary shaftlib. Thus, the position of these two elements may be shifted somewhatfrom the posin tions shown in the drawing. instance, it indy be desiredto rotate the stationary cam few degrees forward in order to maintainthe pall and the ratchet wheel in engagement little longer. Also, itwill be observed that the le is provided with an. adjusting screw im ichbears against the stationary caro. and t serves to regulate the timingof the device. The inicroswitch El? shown in and la mounted on astandard i i i, the standard beirg adjustably mounted on the supportingplate lever 9i nia-y be varied in order to regulate the timing. lTheforegoing adjustments i rinit the operation of the machine to beregulated in ac cordance with the dimensions of the bags to be closed.

After the front and rear walls have been tucked, the top edges of theYside wall of the bag are closed by means of closing belts illu and lili.These belts are disposed around pulleys H32, its, respectively at theright end and pulleys tibi, HD5 respectively at the left end. The latterpulleys are driven by suitable gearing itl which are journalled in abridge member iut, the pulleys IM, lil-5i being mounted on the undersurface of the bridge member. The sealing rollers it in this machine aremounted directly in iront of the pullcys itil, m5 so that after the baghas been closed, by bringing the edges together, it is immediatelysealed. As indicated above, the bags are carried through the sealingrollers by belts il, 2i?, 2 i, and the latter are extended so that thebags may be conveyed onto a suitable delivery table, not shown.

It will be understood that the sealing function can be performed bymeans other than the partisular sealing rollers i 5 which are shownherein, and that the position of the sealing means is not critical.Furthermore, it may be desired to provide between the pulleys loll, tiltand the sealing rollers, means for folding over the top edges of thebag, or for applying adhesive, or for performing various otherfunctions. For instance, the inven tion is applicable for use with othertypes of bags than heat sealing bags.

The operation of the machine has been de scribed in detail in connectionwith the description of the various parts and sub-assemblies there of.In summary, the lled bags are placed on the conveyor belt at the bagreceiving portion I3 of the machine, and they are maintained upright bythe extended Shaper belt 2t. The bags are continuously advanced throughthe throat i2 of the machine which serves to straighten the bags andbetween the shaper plates 2d and 25 which shape the side walls of thebag and contents. as the bags pass between the Shaper plates the frontand rear Walls are tucked, and the top edges ci the side wall are closedby means of closing belts M30, i0 l After this, the bag is sealed by thesealing rollers I6.

The machine can be readily adjusted to ac commodate bags of variouscapacities by operae tion of the handle 3l which causes the Shaperplates 24, 25 and the Shaper belts 2li and di to move toward or awayfrom each other. Similarly, the elevation of the conveyor belt il' maybe adjusted to accommodate bags of diiiercnt height by adjusting theposition of the track l.

Although only a preferred embodiment of my invention has been shown anddescribed herein, it is obvious that various modifications and changesmay be made therein without departing from the spirit of my invention.

i claim:

l. A bag closing machine comprising a pair of belts having inner spansspaced from each other and adapted to move in a horizontal direction,said belts being disposed in vertical planes, whereby the side walls ofa partially filled bag may be engaged by said inner spans and the bagadvanced in an upright position, backing means for said inner spans, atucker rotatably mounted about an axis spaced above said belts andhaving a plurality of radially extending arms adapted to project intothe space between said belts, means for intermittently rotating saidtucker so that the front wall of said bag will be engaged and tucked byone of said arms when said tucker is stationary and so that the rearwall of said bag will be engaged and tucked by an adjacent arm when saidtucker is rotatng, and a pair of closing belts disposed above said:tiret-mentioned belts and in front of said tucker and having convoi inginner spans whereby the side walls or" said bag will be engaged andbrought together after the front and rear walls thereof have beentucked.

2. A bag closing machine comprising means to advance a succession ofpartially filled bags in an upright position, a tucliing device having aplurality of radially extending arins and being rotatably mounted aboutan axis spaced above said bags, means for driving said tuclring device,each of said arms having means extending rearwardly for cooperativeengagement with the front wall of a bag and having means extendingforwardly for cooperative engagement with the rear wall of a bag, clutchmeans between said driving means and said tucking device, said clutchmeans being normally disengaged, means actuated by the displacement ofsaid tucking device when engaged by an advancing bag for causing saidclutch to establish a driving connection between said driving means andsaid tucking device to rotate said tucking device at a greater linearspeed than the speed at which said bag is advanced, whereby one of saidforwardly extending means will tuck the rear wall of said bag, saidclutch means including means for breaking said driving connection, andmeans for causing said tucking device to remain stationary in a positionfor tucking the front wall or a succeeding bag.

3. A bag closing machine comprising means to advance a succession ofpartially iilled bags in an upright position, a tucking device having aplurality of radially extending arms and being rotatably mounted aboutan axis spaced above bags, means for driving said tucking device, eachof said arms having means extending rearwardly for cooperativeengagement with the front wall oi a bag and having means extendingforwardly `for cooperative engagement with the rear wall of a bag,clutch means between said driving means and said tucking device, meansto lock said tucking device in a position in which the rearwardlyextending means of one arm will be engaged by the front wall of a bag sothat a portion of said wall will be tucked, and means actuated by theadvance of said bag iol' releasing said locking means after said frontwall has been tucked, said clutch means being operative upondisplacement of said arm by said bag after said locking means has beenreleased to establish a driving connection between said driving meansand said tucking device to rotate said tucking device at a greaterlinear speed than the speed at which said bag is advanced, whereby saidforwardly extending means of an adjacent arm will engage the rear wallof said bag so that a part of said rear wall will be tucked, said clutchmeans inciuding means for breaking said driving connection prior to thetime that said forwardly extending means engages said rear wall.

4. In a bag closing machine, the combination of a bag tucking devicehaving a plurality of radially extending arms, means for continuouslyadvancing a succession of bags in upright position past said tri-ckingdevice, means for intermittently rotating said bag tucking device, saidlatter means comprising a continuously rotating ratchet wheel, a pawlwheel axially spaced therefrom and having a pawl for engagement withsaid ratchet wheel, a stationary cam engaging said pawl for establishingand disestablishing a driving connection between said pawl and ratchetwheels, means for locking said tucking device in a series of angularpositions in which said arms are successively engaged by said bags asthey are advanced by said bag advancing means, and means actuated by theadvance of said bags to release said locking means so that said tuckingdevice can be rotated by the movement of said bags, said tucking devicebeing driven by said pawl wheel.

5. In a bag closing machine, the combination of a bag tucking device,means for continuously advancing a partially filled bag in uprightpositien, and means for intermittently rotating said bag tucking device,said latter means comprising a continuously rotating ratchet wheel, apawl wheel spaced therefrom and having a pawl for engagement with saidratchet wheel, means connecting said pawl wheel and said tucking deviceso that the latter may be driven by said pawl wheel, stationary cammeans disposed for engagement with said pawl to break the drivingconnection between said pawl and ratchet wheels, detent means forlocking said pawl wheel in a predetermined position at a time when saiddriving connection is broken, and means actuated by the advance of saidbag to release said detent means so that said tucking device can berotated by the movement of a bag, the movement of said bag subsequent tothe release of said detent means serving to displace said tucking deviceand to release said pawl from said cam means so as to reestablish saiddriving connection.

6. In a bag closing machine, a tucking device comprising a supportingarm, a shoe mounted at the end of said arm, said shoe including a platedisposed in a plane perpendicular to the axis of said arm and a secondplate disposed perpendicular to said rst plate and projecting therefromin a direction away from said supporting arm.

7. A tucking device according to claim 6 having a rod disposedsubstantially parallel to said supporting arm and projecting from theedge oi said rst plate in the same direction of said supporting arm.

8. In a bag closing machine, a tucking device comprising a hub, aplurality of radially disposed spokes, a plurality of shoes, one shoebeing mounted at the end of each spoke, each shoe comprising a platehaving pointed ends and secured at its central portion to a spoke anddisposed in a plane perpendicular to said spoke, one end of said plateproviding a toe for engaging the rear wall of a bag and the other end ofsaid plate comprising a heel for engaging the front wall of a bag, and asecond plate disposed in a plane perpendicular to said rst plate andsubstantially parallel to the axis of said tucking device and projectingfrom the mid-portion of said mst-mentioned plate in a direction awayfrom said spoke.

9. A tucking device according to claim 8 in which said shoes areprovided with toe rods and heel rods which are disposed parallel to saidspokes and project from the ends of said plates in the same direction assaid spokes.

KENNETH STONE.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,551,525 Hamer Aug. 25, 1925 1,909,319 Taylor May 16, 19331,979,496 Schilbach Nov. 6, 1934 1,998,287 Pierson Apr. 16, 19352,045,254 Schlemmer June 23, 1936 2,085,442 Newell June 29, 19372,253,036 Kimple Aug. 19, 1941 2,410,834 Messmer Nov. 12, 1946

